“We should get ready,” I say, patting his thighs.
“Come here, you little brat,” Brent grunts as he catches my wrist and pulls me over to him. He kisses me hard, and I melt into him for a moment.
“I’m scared,” I admit quietly.
“We are going to be okay, Nia. I promise,” he says, kissing me gentler this time. I sigh, and he lets me get up. When I get off the bed, I frown.
“What?” Adrian asks.
“I don’t have clothes. I amnotwearing that fucking uniform ever again,” I say firmly.
“I think that Raul and Fiona are here. They brought you some stuff,” Adrian says. “Go down and get dressed. We will be down soon.”
“Get dressed down there?!” I ask.
“Raul has been inside of you and will be inside of you again,” he says simply. My eyes go wide, and Brent laughs. ”Go, Little Dove.”
“Fine,” I say, snatching his shirt out of his hand. I squeak when Adrian grabs me by the throat and pulls me against his chest.
“I might be more relaxed outside of that school, but I will not tolerate the attitude,” Adrian scolds.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper.
“Go downstairs and do as I asked,” he says, his tone still dark as he releases me.
“Yes, sir,” I say tearfully. I run like a scolded dog and pull my shirt on as I go down the stairs.
“Well, good morning,” Raul laughs, but his face drops into a frown when he sees me crying. “What’s wrong?”
“Leave me alone,” I choke out as I slip past him and run down. Fiona is sitting on the couch when I pass through the living room. I feel bad for blowing past her, but I need to be alone. I get to the guest bathroom and lock myself in before sitting in the corner by the sink. I pull my knees up to hug my legs, and sobs rack from my chest. Once they’re out, I can’t stop the flood of emotions.
A knock at the door has me crying harder. All I can picture is Dad stomping into the bathroom and dragging me out by my hair.
Not Dad. Edward.
My body is trembling, and my sobs turn hysterical when the door opens. “No!” I scream and turn my body away to cower when someone gets close to me.
“Nia, sweetheart,” Brent says softly, kneeling in front of me. When I don’t move, he makes me by standing and scooping me into his arms. I start to fight him, but he holds me tight againsthis chest, and it's soothing enough that I don’t spiral. I am taken out to the living room, where he sits and has me turn to straddle him. He hugs me tight to his chest, and someone lays a heavy blanket on my back. In his arms, I sob to the point I can’t breathe. No one says a word, and Brent rubs my back. I am clinging to him with my face buried in his chest while I hide under the blanket. Over time, I stop crying and I go silent. We sit like this for a while until Brent speaks.
“Adrian, it’s not you. You know that, right?”
“I shouldn’t have scolded her like that,” Adrian says.
“It’s not that you scolded her. It’s what you said,” he explains. “Edward used to always say that. ‘I won’t tolerate the attitude.’ I think between stress, change, and trauma, it was just enough to send her over. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Uhm…” Fiona says. “Sorry to change the subject, but uh…”
I realize Fiona probably doesn’t know about Brent not being biologically related to me, and her shock breaks through just enough that I let out a tearful laugh. Brent sits me up and has a cheesy smile on his face. “Are you okay?” he asks, cupping my cheek.
“Yeah. I… I don’t know what happened. I panicked and didn’t even realize it. I’m sorry,” I say before looking at Adrian, who is sitting beside us. “Adrian, I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. I’m sorry I triggered you,” he says, leaning over to gently kiss me. When I pull back, Brent grabs my face and kisses me hard, making Fiona gasp loudly.
“Why is that hot? Is that not hot? Fuck, I wish I had a brother. I’d grind on my brother too if he looked like him,” Fiona says. Adrian moves the blanket off me right as Brent grabs my bare ass and pulls my hips against his. “Oh sweet baby Jesus, I’m gonna come!”
Adrian, Brent, and I burst out laughing as I move to sit beside Brent. Fiona is wide-eyed but grinning. “I’m not biologically related to Brent,” I say. “Turns out, Edward stole or bought me when I was little.”
“Oh, thank God! I was going to tell you not to let him come inside you, or your kid might come out fucked up.”
